Arkansas News Bureau
LITTLE ROCK — Arkansans with permits to carry concealed handguns could bring their guns to church under a bill filed Tuesday by state Rep. Beverly Pyle, R-Cedarville.
House Bill 1237 would remove “any church or other place of worship” from the list of places that a person with a license to carry a concealed handgun is not allowed to carry a gun under state law.
“Because of so many things that’s happened across the nation in our churches, so many incidents and deaths, this is something that needs to be addressed before something else happens in our state,” Pyle said.
The bill also would allow concealed handguns in the parking lots of places of worship.
Pyle said a church could post a sign banning handguns but would still be allowed under the bill to give certain people permission to carry guns into the church.
Guns in church may be more common than people realize, Pyle said.
“We’d probably be surprised how many people do it already because they forget they have it in their purse,” she said.
Fourteen House members have signed as co-sponsors of the bill.
January 28th, 2009 at 8:53 am
Really? Guns in church…. I wonder if Jesus would have carried a gun to church… probably not. When people commited violent acts against him he tended to respond with kindness. I know! Its pretty crazy. I’m not saying people shouldn’t ever carry weapons… but come on. Its called a sanctuary for a reason. Lets keep our sanctuaries: sanctuaries! They are supposed to be places of peace and hope and you can’t create peace with a gun. You can keep violence at bay, but to create peace you must be peaceful.
January 28th, 2009 at 9:48 am
That’s like saying, “Bill would reduce regulations on the people who build bridges for trains.”
it may work out totally cool for a while.
a decade even.
But this is one of those things, where it only takes one,
just ONE tiny thing to go just a little bit wrong, and it all goes terribly, terribly wrong.
Plus, we all know Arkansans get all sorts of antsy in their pantsy once they get a little communion wine in them.
The people that support this bill have inferior IQs, and their seed should be wiped from the earth for the good of humanity.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:25 am
I don’t know about their seed being wiped from the face of the earth, but I do agree that it is a false assumption that guns in church would stop violence against churches and other religious groups. Have we learned nothing from the conflicts between Christians and Muslims and the Jews and the Palestinians. Violence begets violence. If anything it would just make it worse. I don’t want my church to become an armory. If I wanted to worship in an armory I would find a David Koresh-like sect to worship with. Just read the sermon on the mount in Mathew and see what the God you worship says about your enemies and how you should treat them. If the Christian God is the standard you want to base your worship on then I can only assume you want to obey the teachings that he sets forth for you.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:33 am
Wallboski, you keep an even keel.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:50 am
I find that when I don’t people are less likely to listen.
January 28th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Wallboski and Icehouse, neither of you guys have been in a church when a kook with a gun is welcome to kill as many people as he desires because the church is a “gun free zone” which really means a “free killing zone”.
January 28th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
All are welcome in the house of the Lord.
Also, you HAVE been in a church that is a free killing zone? You go to the wrong church.
January 28th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
I am a church member and also a self defense advocate.
Icehouse’s comment
“The people that support this bill have inferior IQs, and their seed should be wiped from the earth for the good of humanity.”
Shows that he has a superiority complex similiar to the Neo-Nazi and Arayan Nation groups.
Wallboski’s comment “Violence begets violence.” is a straw man argument. He is falsely portraying concealed weapons owners as being violent people because they carry a concealed firearm or weapon for self defense or the defense of others. WE are not violent people, rather people who value human life and seek to protect it against all those to seek to destroy human life. Your point of view supports criminals and not law abiding citizens. You won’t even know who is carrying a firearm as it is CONCEALED.
Wallboski’s comment “When people commited violent acts against him he tended to respond with kindness.” Jesus was never attacked with a knife, gun or attempted to be raped. When Jesus was seized and crucified He endured tremendous pains and took them onto Himself as a fulfillment of prophesy. Do NOT confuse the issues.
The attitude that firearms cannot be carried on one’s person (who is law abiding) is the attitude that allows violent crime to exist on our streets. Those who vote against concealed weapons holders vote FOR criminals.
January 28th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
We’re talking about CHURCH, Patriot. I’m all for self-defense, but the more hand guns in one place, the larger the likelihood that one gets used.
If a congregation votes to allow handguns on their premises, then that’s their own folly, and their right to go down that path, much like cigarette smoking. It’s going to kill you sooner or later, but it’s your choice.
I’m saying, that a sweeping statewide rule allowing guns in all churches is the kind of thing sensationalist morons would do. Like the people that stopped brushing their teeth, because they thought flouride was a communist plot.
People too stupid to use rationality and think for themselves. And yes, I feel superior to people who are too stupid to use rationality and think for themselves.
January 31st, 2009 at 6:58 am
So Icehouse, what rationale are you using to draw your conclusions? The FACTS show that violent crime is reduced in states that allow concealed carry. Would a deranged person be more likely, or less likely, to enter a church, intent on inflicting harm, if there was a possibility that members were armed? HMMM… rational thought would be drawn from the statistics (FACTS) that show concealed carry = less violent crime. Another irrational statement… “the more guns in one place, the larger the likelihood that one gets used.” If that were true, the Police Station would be a very hazardous place. If I understand the bill, it would give the church the right to allow, or prohibit, concealed carry by members. Since the church is private property, shouldn’t the owners (members) make that decision? Just my rational thoughts as stupid as they may be.
January 31st, 2009 at 7:09 am
Wallboski… what did Jesus do to the moneychangers table in the temple? What did he do to those that were selling doves etc. in the temple? Read Matt 21:12 There is a time for righteous anger. If a lunatic entered your church with a shotgun and started blasting away, what would you do? Answers… A)Cower down behind a pew and pray not to get shot B)Stand up in front of the mad man and preach peace (and probably be martyred), or C)Pray there is someone in the congregation that is legally carrying a firearm and can stop the lunatic.
Do you want to “turn the other cheek” to the radical Jihadists intent on killing you (assuming you are an infidel Christian like me)?